PEORIA, Ariz.  The Padres position on Andrew Cashner is slowly shifting.

It now looks like the hard-throwing right-hander could live up to his Feb. 12 vow of being ready by Opening Day, although he made only his second exhibition appearance of the spring Friday.

“We’ll see,” Padres manager Bud Black said after Cashner held the Dodgers to one run on three hits and a walk with two strikeouts in 2 1/3 innings against the Dodgers.

“Will he be ready? Let’s let him perform and hold his stuff, make sure his thumb (he had surgery Dec. 6 to repair a lacerated tendon), shoulder and lat (muscle) are not an issue. Cash was good today. He had a good tempo to his delivery. The ball came out good. This is more like what a starter needs to do in San Diego.”

Prior to Friday’s split squad doubleheader, Black announced Cashner might go longer than his scheduled two innings if “his pitch count was low.”

He was relieved after retiring the first Dodger he faced in the third.

“It was good to get up and go out there the third time,” said Cashner. “It felt good today. The ball came out easy and that was a real positive. My timing was just off a bit. My breaking ball is never good in Arizona. I need to work on my off-speed pitches, although the change got better as the game went on.”

Cashner threw 35 pitches. He likely has three more starts before Opening Day. The natural pitch count progression would be 50, 65 and 80. Is that enough to be stretched out as a starter?

“It’s going to be close,” said Cashner, who struck out Matt Kemp on three straight fast balls in the first that were clocked at 96-96-97.

Cashner was one of four candidates for the rotation who pitched Friday as the Padres split.

Jason Marquis allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks against two strikeouts while throwing 74 pitches in the Padres 7-5 loss to Kansas City. Tim Stauffer allowed four runs on four hits and a walk while striking out three Royals. He threw 47 pitches.

Anthony Bass allowed one run on one hit in three innings against the Dodgers. He threw 42 pitches and issued one walk while striking out three.

Padres notes

Black believes left fielder Carlos Quentin will be ready for Opening Day, but admitted the possibility of the left fielder not being ready “is a valid question.” “It’s a tough question. There is still time for Carlos to be ready. But you want players to be progressing.”

--Right fielder Will Venable was 2-for-3 with a homer and three RBIs and center fielder Cameron Maybin drew a walk and scored a run in their returns to the lineup. Catcher Nick Hundley also hit a two-run homer and is hitting .469 this spring.

--Center field prospect Travis Jankowski capped a three-run ninth by singling home the winning run as the Padres defeated the Dodgers 8-7. Third base project Duanel Jones had tied the game with a two-run homer.

--Outfielder Jaff Decker was optioned to Triple-A Tucson Friday.

--Nick Vincent had an MRI taken on the right wrist problem that has sidelined the right-handed reliever.